Frank Johnson: Lost in translation -- movies fail to make quality games

Friday

Nov 30, 2007 at 12:01 AMNov 30, 2007 at 6:44 AM

The Gaming Life column: Stay away from any and all games that are a based on a movie.

Frank Johnson

It’s Christmas time, and for every avid gamer out there, that means a long list full of wishful thinking. A sleigh-load of games has arrived this season in an effort to capitalize on the ever-growing player base. From the casual Wii-moms to the hardest of hardcore, Santa has a grab-bag of goodies for all audiences.
Rather than do all the hard work of creating a list of quality holiday purchases for the gamer in your life, I will instead instill in you one golden rule. This rule, when applied properly, will help you cut away a large portion of potentially worthless investment.
Stay away from any and all games that are a based on a movie.
The reason for this is that games of this genre tend to fall somewhere between embarrassingly awful and barely bearable in terms of quality.
Who do we have to blame for glutting the market with these needless ports? The answer can be found a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.
When George Lucas negotiated the contract for the original “Star Wars” films in the ’70s, he made a singularly subtle move that resulted in the spawning of the “Star Wars” empire.
He asked that he be given the sole right to handle the marketing and retain all the licensing for the films.
The house that Lucas built is now filled with a whole universe of “Star Wars”-themed merchandise, mostly consisting of 32-ounce commemorative McDonald’s cups and video game spin-offs.
Granted, some games bearing the “Star Wars” logo have merit (including one of my favorite PC games of all time, “Tie Fighter”) but many lack the necessary Force.
A great example of just how wrong movies can go when they become a video game can be found in one of this summer’s biggest blockbusters.
A High Flyer With Low Scores
Say what you will about the latest Spidey iteration (too many villains, too little Venom and a little too hokey), the game tie-on started out flying high but then quickly tumbled down to the street below.
Web-slinging from skyscraper-to-skyscraper is an exhilarating experience, and the virtual New York is certainly big enough to allow for plenty of exploring.
The wonky camera presents a great example of the difference between a difficult game and a frustrating one. When the game’s basic mechanics and controls are working against the player, that’s not challenging, it’s downright infuriating.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment of “Spider-Man 3” was the lack of next-gen graphical power brought to the mix. It is hardly Peter Parker’s first video game outing, and fans were expecting a high-def experience.
But what is it about movies-to-video-games (MVGs, for short) that makes them so persistently awful? Can it just be blamed simply on the projects being tossed to sub-par studios to churn out?
Yes, actually, that really may be the primary reason.
For example, of this summer’s top grossing blockbusters, seven of the 10 had video game equivalents. The only one of these worth the price of admission was “Harry Potter,” developed by major publisher EA.
(Note: It should be said that this is a double accomplishment, a worthwhile MVG and a quality effort from EA.)
The Same Old Song
I believe, deep down, that what is essentially wrong with porting movies to video games is the same problem that occurs turning books to movies or vice-versa.
Each of the three media requires a different kind of pacing and setup. Novels emphasize detailed, deep, gradual character development while movies must move much more quickly and use visual ques.
Video games require something, however, much different. I am a firm believer that any good game comes with a compelling story. But along with that story, games require a different kind of planning altogether in addition to the usual subjects of character, plot, setting, etc.
Games require something called “scenarios.” A scenario basically allows for some kind of interactivity for the players and a degree of agency for the character.
This is precisely why a majority of games don’t translate well without a significant reworking of the story’s premise. Those kind of elaborate situational plots make for a disjointed film experience and are an unnecessary construction for any written medium.
Action moves, to some degree, mimic this by positioning the heroes up against insurmountable odds in a fight for the fate of the universe.
However, that just means they get pawned off on a developer looking for a quick and easy translation, the poor production values kick in and the game version becomes total crap anyway.
Nostalgia FTW
Maybe developers have just gotten sloppy as time has worn on, but I can distinctly remember the platforming adventures of Disney’s “Aladdin” on the SEGA Genesis.
As the baggy-pantsed hero, you navigated levels with nothing but a sword, apples and a trusty jump button. The sword could slash, the apples could stun (some) enemies and the jump vaulted you over rooftops.
However, at this time there also existed only a handful of franchises (Mario, Sonic, Castlevania) and developers were tied up making sure their next sequel lived up to the oft-insurmountable hype.
In short, if you wish to keep your Christmas merry and your holidays bright, then keep your stockings free of MVGs.
Frank Johnson has pitched the idea of turning a newspaper column into a video game, but no one seems to be buying it, even though it would be totally awesome.